


Day 31: Not What He Seems

by PineTrain



Series: 40 Days of Pinecest [32]
Category: Gravity Falls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-06
Updated: 2017-04-06
Packaged: 2018-10-15 20:29:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10557248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PineTrain/pseuds/PineTrain





	

Stan sipped his bourbon as he looked out his window. It was really just a ‘window’ that Mabel had made for his otherwise dour office. A false approximation of the world outside with a backlight to imitate the sun shining through. She’d become so skilled over the years.

“Grunkle Stan!” she yelled as the door opened and his heart warmed when he felt her arms wrap around him from behind, the chair the only impediment between them. She was always such a joy.

“Mabel, it’s good to see you,” he said gruffly, “but sit down, I have something important to say.”

Her arms left him and Stan turned to see her seated in the chair he’d set up for her. Her excited face broke his heart, but this had to be done. He breathed deeply in preparation.

“Look, I don’t want to dance around this so I’m just going to ask right out. Are you and Dipper sleeping together?”

Mabel’s face quirked into a half-smile and she began to open her mouth. Stan was a lifelong con artist, though, and he knew a practiced lie when he saw one. Others might have meant the standard interpretation of “sleeping together” but Stan meant something more and conveyed it through his eyes. He saw her smile rapidly fall under his steady gaze while she attempted to answer.

“W-well, yeah! Sib-siblings do that all the t-time! N-nothing weird about that!”

Tears started rolling down her cheeks as she clearly understood the lie wasn’t going to work. Stan didn’t know if it had before or if this was the first time she tried to use it, but it hurt to see her joy fall so quickly into despair.

“Pumpkin…” he said, reaching out to her. She swatted his hand away, hyperventilating as her eyes flipped back and forth in panic. She stood up without a word and rushed to the door. Stan was faster though, despite his age, and his hand held the door closed when she tried to open it.

Mabel looked up at him and he saw terror in her eyes. She backed away to the wall, searching for another way out. Stan wondered if there was some kind of plan in place for this situation. If her escaping would lead to the family never hearing from her or Dipper ever again. He couldn’t risk letting her leave.

“Pumpkin…Mabel, listen…it’s okay,” he offered, the girl eyeing him warily. “Do you remember all those years ago when I asked you to trust me even though it looked like the world might end? This is the same. Just trust me, I want to help you.”

Mabels face screwed up as she simultaneously cried while still trying to keep an eye on him. After a minute of thought, she slowly walked to him and Stan hugged her close.

“I trust you, Grunkle Stan…”

Stan smiled a bit as he stroked her back in an effort to comfort her. He loved these kids and while he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about what they were doing, he would help them however he could.

Stan had an eye for these things, so it hadn’t been hard for him to tell when they arrived this summer. There was no way of knowing if anyone else had caught on or would in the future if they kept on like they were. But if they truly wanted to go down this path, then he wasn’t going to let them do it alone.

* * *


End file.
